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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22780081">hold my hand and tell no lies</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/livtontea/pseuds/livtontea'>livtontea</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Umbrella Academy (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>....kind of, Alternate Universe, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, M/M, No Incest, Roleswap, Valentine's Day Fic Exchange, Vietnam, at least i think thats what this is im like 87 percent sure thats what we're doing, certified cursed fic, crack treated seriously but like this is a serious fic by crack i just mean its ben/dave, i cant with this asdkjfhdsk im so sorry, no beta we die like klaus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 15:49:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>930</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22780081</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/livtontea/pseuds/livtontea</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Fine. Maybe I’m a little crazy. But so are you.”</p><p>“I’m not crazy.” Ben grins. “I’m fucking insane.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dave/Ben Hargreeves</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>hold my hand and tell no lies</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>im so sorry aksdjhfskd i cannot believe im writing semiserious bave EVE THIS ONE'S FOR YOU TO SUFFER THROUGH</p><p>;w; i would say enjoy but. unlikely. good luck</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ben finds himself in Vietnam after he opens the briefcase, which is, pretty fucked up. Not as fucked up as what those weirdos in the masks were planning on doing to him though. He has an inkling of a feeling that if not for his passengers, he would have probably gotten off with something way worse than a stomachache.</p><p>And the fact that he’s in Vietnam. Like, the Vietnam war, apparently.</p><p>Scratch that thought, this is definitely as fucked up as those masked guys.</p><p>Ben blinks, and he’s still clutching the suitcase. Briefcase? He never cared enough to learn the difference. His knuckles are white, and more importantly, there are people yelling at him and a (kind of cute, he can admit) guy looking at him with wide eyes.</p><p>Ben makes some sort of undignified squeaking noise, and next thing he knows, he’s on a bus. Well, fuck. At least they didn’t take the briefcase.</p><p>He clutches at the smooth black of the case, itching to fling it open and leave here as soon as he came. He can’t, though, because something tells him disappearing from a packed bus would not be the best idea. Also, he has no guarantee of where he’ll land. Now he’s in the Vietnam war—which is, if you look at it, significantly better than other places he could be. Like, say, the eruption of Vesuvius. He has a chance of survival here, at least.</p><p>The suitcase stays closed. Ben doesn’t know why he even opened it, really. It wasn’t hard to conclude it was dangerous, wasn’t hard to read into Five’s newfound demeanor. Klaus cheered him on to unclick the latch, maybe pawn whatever’s inside. <em>God,</em> he wishes he could.</p><p>He can feel somebody leaning closer to him, until their faces are almost side by side.</p><p>“You just get in country?” It’s the guy from before; the one with the sandy blond hair and piercing blue eyes and completely jacked arms, and <em>fuck</em> Ben for being weakest when presented with a pretty face.</p><p>“Oh, uh, yeah. I’m—new.”</p><p>Blue-eyed hot guy laughs, and if Ben could slap himself right now without facing social repercussions, he would. “Shit’s crazy, I know. You’ll adjust.” He lightly claps Ben’s shoulder, and it feels like fire. Ben is met with a broad hand hovering next to his face. “I’m Dave.”</p><p>He gingerly shakes Dave’s hand. “Ben.”</p><p>They talk quietly for the rest of the bus ride, the feeling of unease in Ben’s stomach growing with every word. And this time, it can’t be solely attributed to the things under his skin.</p><p> </p><p>He thinks, Dave has nice hands. It’s a passing thought, a note scribbled in his head in passing as Dave shows him how to fire a gun. Ben already knows, but he's out of practice. Ben already knows how to shoot, but not a war rifle in 1968. They were all taught how to use handguns before their first mission.</p><p>“You just have to—” Dave says, adjusting Ben’s stance and grip on the weapon. Ben’s finger hovers over the trigger. “—yeah. Like that. Good job.”</p><p>Dave smiles at him. Ben smiles back, and mentally rams his head into a wall.</p><p> </p><p>Dave has nice hair, too. It’s gold in the sunlight.</p><p>“You would have liked my brother,” says Ben. “He’s just as crazy as you are.”</p><p>Dave laughs. It’s a good laugh, too, and everything about Dave is so <em>good.</em> Ben has only been here a handful of months, but he feels like he really knows the soldier. “I’m not crazy.”</p><p>“No, you are,” insists Ben. “You’re crazier than Klaus, and that’s saying something.”</p><p>“Fine. Maybe I’m a little crazy. But so are you.”</p><p>“I’m not crazy.” Ben grins. “I’m fucking insane.”</p><p>Dave lets out a mad laugh, a cackle firing in the quiet of the day. Ben laughs along, thinking of his brother who he hasn’t seen since the latches on the briefcase clicked open.</p><p>“It’s true. You would have liked him.”</p><p>“Would have? Is he…?”</p><p>Ben feels a wave of awkwardness flood their conversation. “Dead? Yeah.”</p><p>“Oh.” Dave puts a hand on his forearm. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>“Don’t be. He’s an asshole through and through, he doesn’t really mind.” Ben laughs.</p><p>“Uh… Were you two, close?”</p><p>“We are,” says Ben.</p><p>“Ben, you just said he’s gone, but now you’re talking like he’s still alive.”</p><p>“Trust me,” says Ben, leaning his head on Dave’s shoulder. His stomach growls with forces unseen. “It’s complicated.”</p><p> </p><p>Dead-man Jerry snarls at Ben as he passes him. Ben pointedly makes a wide arc around the ghost, and ignores the strange look Dave gives him when he does.</p><p> </p><p>“You can see them, can’t you?”</p><p>“Mm?” Ben doesn’t lift his head from Dave’s chest. They’ve been doing whatever it is that they’re doing for a week or two. He doesn’t want to ruin it with this conversation.</p><p>“The ghosts. You can see them. That’s how you can talk to your brother, even though he’s dead.”</p><p>He doesn’t say “yeah” or “no, you’re wrong” or “what makes you think so”. Ben closes his eyes and says, “How did you know?”</p><p>“Sometimes you don’t know somebody died until we tell you. You just keep talking like they’re still there.”</p><p>“Oh.”</p><p>“It’s… kind of cool. I mean, weird, but cool.”</p><p>“It isn’t,” says Ben. “It really isn't. But thanks.”</p><p> </p><p>“We should get a cabin in the woods,” says Dave. “When we’re discharged.”</p><p>Ben grabs onto his hand, and thinks of the briefcase stored under his cot. Fuck.</p><p>“Definitely. I’d love having a cabin in the woods with you.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>my <a href="https://seven-misfits.tumblr.com/">tumblr's</a> open to people bitchslapping me for writing this. comment if this fucked you up, double comment if i'm slowly pulling you over to the bave side uwu</p><p>thanks for reading, and have a great day!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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